How to overcome “ zoom fatigue ”

Throughout the pandemic, many old offices workers were bound to be glued to their computer screens. As a job migrated online, video tools like Zoom and Google Hangouts have become the rare outlet for regular face to face with colleagues. Buthort an alternative to see your colleagues without a screen on the way, all this videoconferencing led to an epidemic of “zoom fatigue”.

According to a new study by Stanford researchers published in the journal Technology, mind and behaviorZoom fatigue is basically what it sounds like – resulting from the increased stress of maintaining remote connections via video chat-and that leads to burnout, stress, and monotony at work. But there are ways to ease the stranglehold video conferencing might have on your minds.

What is zoom fatigue?

This doesn’t apply specifically to Zoom, and company executives would likely argue that the term does their marketing efforts a disservice. Jeremy Bailenson, founding director of the Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab, says the problem applies to everyone videoconferencing services. gbroadly, it describes the fatigue caused by the need to feel constantly turned on when switching between browser windows to met. It makes sense too, given that studies have shown this increase in screen time, especially when combined with a sedentary lifestyle, increases your chances to develop moderate to severe depression.

If you have it, you are probably drowned in a busy calendar of virtual meetings, and feel as you can hardly keep your head above water.

What the cause

Bailenson’s research identifies four reasons video conferencing can be so mentally taxing:

• Intense eye contact is tiring. Locking your eyes with your coworkers to show that you are paying attention can seem demanding. Doing it several times a day can feel overwhelming. Unless you make concerted eye contact for much of the meeting, your coworkers might think your attention is waning.
• Watching each other during video chats is tiring. Looking at yourself in a meeting only increases performance anxiety. The psychological cost of living throughout the pandemic is heavy enough – why make it worse by worrying about the way you look at your colleagues?
• Video chats mean we travel less. If you’re constantly chained to a desk, you’re not moving as much as your body needs. At least in a traditional office environment, you may need to go to a conference room on a different floor. Switching from one videoconference to another means that we sit more and we move less, to the detriment of our mental well-being.
• Non-verbal signals are more difficult to interpret. The challenge of deciphering non-verbal cues only adds to the stress caused by video chats. This can lead to what Bailenson calls “cognitive overload,” where your head might be swimming in the supposed subtext of the conversation.

Ways to combat zoom fatigue

Fortunately, Bailenson did not uncover the problems without offering solutions.

• For eye contact: The researcher recommends not to use the full screen setting. That way your coworkers will at least look a little smaller, so you won’t feel as pressured to keep your eyes on theirs.
• For self-awareness: It is not really required to keep your camera on during every meeting. If you’re not presenting something, what’s the point of filming yourself? If you need to keep your camera on, Bailenson recommends adjusting your settings to see only the other person in the chat, instead of making both videos available to both parties. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to turn off your camera.
• For mobility: Bailenson recommends getting a different camera that you can pair with your feed so you can still move around, and maybe present it from a standing position if you feel so inclined. Another the remedy is turn off your camera again and at wear bluetooth headphones so you can walk around your house or apartment.
• For anxiety related to non-verbal signals: Turning off your camera also works great, but to boost it even further, the researcher recommends listening to the meeting for away from your computer. That way, if you’re only using audio and feel comfortable attending the meeting during, for example, put away the dishes, you won’t be worried about over-analyzing all the micro-cues that appear regularly.